Columbia Helicopters Names Santiago Crespo as VP of Business Development and Marketing

Columbia Helicopters Names Santiago Crespo as VP of Business Development and Marketing2015-05-052016-02-25https://www.colheli.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/columbia_white_logo_280px.pngColumbia Helicoptershttps://www.colheli.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/columbia_white_logo_280px.png200px200px

Aurora, Oregon — Columbia Helicopters is pleased to announce it has hired Santiago Crespo as the company’s new Vice President of Business Development and Marketing. Crespo previously served as Vice President & General Manager of Oil and Gas Aviation at Erickson Incorporated, and will assume his new duties on May 11th. “I am pleased that Santiago has decided to join the Columbia Helicopters family,” said company president Jim Rankin. “His experience in the heavy-lift helicopter industry, as well as his extensive knowledge of the oil and gas and government services industries, make him a perfect fit within our organization. He will play an integral role in our goal to aggressively expand our fleet of twin-rotor, heavy-lift helicopters.”

In his previous position with Erickson Incorporated, Crespo was responsible for the company’s petroleum exploration support operations. He also previously worked at CHC Helicopter as the Global Key Account Director where he managed its oil and gas business with over $1 billion in annual revenues. He served as Commercial Director for the Americas for CHC, and as Director of South American Sales and Marketing for Evergreen Helicopters. He holds an undergraduate degree in Finance from Catholic University of Ecuador and an MBA from the University of Portland. He is fluent in English, Portuguese and Spanish.

“I am delighted to join the team at Columbia Helicopters and believe that the company has an excellent opportunity to expand its heavy-lift and MRO services worldwide and grow into one of the world’s leading aviation services companies.” Crespo replaces Todd Petersen, Columbia’s current Vice President of Marketing, who is retiring in September after over 43 years with the company. Until his retirement date, Petersen will continue to work for the company as Vice President of Marketing

Columbia Helicopters Names Santiago Crespo as VP of Business Development and Marketing Programs, and will assist Crespo during the transition period. “I doubt there are many people in this industry who have the experience, knowledge and integrity that Todd possesses. He has been instrumental in building Columbia into the company that we are today and I appreciate his desire to assist in Santiago’s transition into Columbia,” added Rankin

Columbia Helicopters continues to be the world leader in heavy-lift helicopter operations, an industry started by the company’s founder, Wes Lematta. The company’s fleet of 13 Columbia Vertol 107-II helicopters, six Columbia Model 234 Chinook helicopters, and 11 Boeing CH-47D helicopters make it the largest, privately-held fleet of heavy-lift helicopters in the world. The company operates these aircraft globally in construction, military and government logistic support, logging, fighting wildfires and petroleum exploration support.

If you’d like more information on these or other topics, please contact:Dan Sweet, Public Relations Manager
Office phone: 503-678-1222
Cell phone: 503-970-4449